Tick-Tac-Foe: When Ticks, Trade, and Zoonotic Pathogens Align in African Wet Meat Markets.

Zoonotic diseases account for over ∼60% of infectious diseases and present a significantly growing fatality threat in Africa. Live and wet markets (LWMs) in Africa function as key economic venues that support human livelihoods through social interaction and trade in food stuff, including meat and other animal-based products. These spaces concentrate and exaggerate human and animal contact, creating conditions conducive to zoonotic spill-over events. This narrative review, based on an opportunistic literature identification process, summarizes the diversity of ticks and tick-borne pathogens (TTBPs) associated with carcasses at African LWMs, as well as the awareness, perceptions, and control practices of stakeholders along the meat value chain. Findings show pervasive infestations by Amblyomma, Rhipicephalus, Hyalomma; limited reports of Haemaphysalis, Ixodes, and Demacentor species; along with the circulation of Rickettsia africae, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus, Anaplasma spp., and Coxiella burnetii. Surveillance efforts remain geographically patchy, with strong bias towards East and West Africa. The knowledge of tick-borne zoonotic diseases is poor and shaped by sociodemographic factors, like education and occupational roles. Control measures, where practiced, are inconsistently applied and inadequate. Collectively, these findings flag African LWMs as understudied epidemiologically permeable hubs, with potential implications in the ecology of tick-borne zoonotic diseases.